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For Everything a Season – Philip Gulley
4****

Subtitle: Simple Musings on Living Well

This is a collection of essays written by Philip Gulley, a Quaker minister; they are organized according to the Bible verse: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; etc.

I love Gulley’s writings, and particularly like his novels featuring Sam Gardner, pastor of a Quaker meeting house in small town Indiana.

In these essays he waxes poetic on gardening, birth stories, the advantages of front porches and stone patios, a child’s joy in exploring the woods, the pitfalls of gossip, the loyalty of neighbors and the joys of love. There is a nostalgia to his descriptions that recalls my own childhood and just brings a smile to my face (and to my heart). Gulley can get a little preachy at times, but that’s to be expected, as ministry is his life, and his personal reflections on the meaning of that life are bound to come out in his essays. There is still plenty or room for humor, however.

Having just lost a dear friend in the past two weeks, this was the perfect read at this time of my life. Gulley’s writings give me great comfort and a sense of peace.


LINK to my review